Laners are well-known machines commonly employed in product processing. Laners distribute product to various channels of the manufacturing line. Some laners receive product flow from a single upstream channel and divide product flow into multiple downstream lanes. Such machines often comprise a fixed upstream portion and a movable downstream portion. The upstream portion receives product inflow. The movable downstream portion distributes the product on a moving conveyor belt.
Ideally, laners would operate without slowing down product flow. But product stability can be compromised during lane changes because the movable portion of the laner has a tendency to swipe product exiting the laner. Products may be damaged or misaligned following contact with the laner. Misaligned products can jam the processing machines. Moreover, many existing laners fail to provide uniform spacing between advancing product containers. As a consequence such laners operate at relatively slow speeds and may be prone to jamming and/or other inefficiencies.
In light of the above, a need exists to provide a high-speed laner, which provides uniform product spacing and that can reposition the downstream portion of the laner without contacting product exiting the laner and without interrupting product flow.